{"id":6535,"date":"2017-12-01T15:14:13","date_gmt":"2017-12-01T20:14:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/groups.etown.edu\/news\/?p=6535"},"modified":"2017-12-11T17:10:42","modified_gmt":"2017-12-11T22:10:42","slug":"e-town-students-peek-over-hedge-to-learn-about-sustainability","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.etown.edu\/index.php\/2017\/12\/01\/e-town-students-peek-over-hedge-to-learn-about-sustainability\/","title":{"rendered":"E-town students peek over hedge to learn about sustainability"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Elizabethtown College is not just blue and gray\u2014it\u2019s also quite green. In fall 2016, E-town joined more than 700 U.S. institutions on a mission to make their campuses cleaner and greener. E-town\u2019s sustainability efforts include increasing environmental literacy on campus, earning funding for renewable energy renovations, increasing environmentally friendly academic offerings and reducing the College\u2019s overall energy consumption.<\/p>\n

Not all of the College\u2019s sustainability practices are immediately noticeable, however. Many operate behind-the-scenes.<\/p>\n

Recently, E-town students Blair Hendricks and Dominic Giancarlo peeked behind the proverbial curtain at the College\u2019s specific sustainability efforts. Working with the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE), they conducted Scholarship, Creative Arts\u00a0and\u00a0Research Program\u00a0projects\u00a0this past summer. Although the students worked in opposite areas of AASHE\u2019s Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System (STARS), both said they enjoyed the research process.<\/p>\n

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I have a personal passion for sustainability.”<\/h2>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Hendricks, a senior international business major, worked with the College\u2019s Department of Engineering to assist with the STARS self-reporting system. She collected data about rates of sustainability education and practices among clubs, professors, and\u00a0courses. Hendricks said her interest in sustainable lifestyles lead her to the project, and she hopes students at the College become more aware of and involved with environmental protection.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have a personal passion for sustainability,\u201d Hendricks said. \u201cThere\u2019s a lot more\u00a0that\u00a0we could be doing with student engagement regarding sustainability on campus.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Hendricks worked on the financial and student initiative ends of the program, Giancarlo \u201919 focused on operational sustainability.<\/p>\n

He teamed up with the College\u2019s Sustainability Committee to analyze current sustainability efforts and pinpoint potential areas of improvement on campus. For the most part, Giancarlo worked with Brenda Read-Daily, associate professor of Engineering and Physics. Dr. Read-Daily also is the department chair, vice chair of the College\u2019s Sustainability Committee and\u00a0lead\u00a0for metrics and data.<\/p>\n

For his side of the project, Giancarlo analyzed the campus sustainable practices, from water use per unit of floor space to the behaviors of dining services, ITS, and print services.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s chemical waste, how the grounds are maintained, sustainable practices, food\u00a0and\u00a0dining,\u201d said the mechanical engineering major and family business and entrepreneurship minor. Prior to his research, Giancarlo admitted to being unaware of many of the sustainable practices at the College. After speaking with numerous departments, Giancarlo emerged with newfound information about sustainability projects on campus, including:<\/p>\n